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Chapters (56)
  1. Front Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Contents
  5. Part One
  6. 1
  7. 2
  8. 3
  9. 4
  10. 5
  11. 6
  12. 7
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. 10
  16. 11
  17. 12
  18. Part Two
  19. 13
  20. 14
  21. 15
  22. 16
  23. 17
  24. 18
  25. 19
  26. 20
  27. Part Three
  28. 21
  29. 22
  30. 23
  31. 24
  32. 25
  33. 26
  34. Part Four
  35. 27
  36. 28
  37. 29
  38. 30
  39. 31
  40. 32
  41. 33
  42. 34
  43. 35
  44. Part Five
  45. 36
  46. 37
  47. 38
  48. 39
  49. 40
  50. 41
  51. 42
  52. 43
  53. Epilogue
  54. Acknowledgments
  55. About the Author
  56. Back Cover

I push open the doors onto a balcony and take a deep breath in. From this vantage point, I can see right over Lake Ontario, a huge sparkling expanse of water that stretches as far as my eye can see. I lean out over the railing, taking in the view and feeling the warmth of the sun shining on my face.

There’s a thump next to me, the sound of metal scraping against metal, and I smile.

If anyone were to look out onto that balcony at that precise moment, they would have seen a different baku at my feet—not a scarab beetle (who is now guarding the door), but a little black cat so slinky and perfectly formed that they might have mistaken it for a shadow.

“Thanks for waiting for me, Jinx,” I say with a grin.

>>Anytime. So, now what are we going to do?

“I guess it’s time to figure out how I’m going to change the world.”

>>Together.

“Together.”

Jinx.

Acknowledgments

Books are always a team effort, and I’m so lucky to have the very best team around me! Thanks as always to the brilliant team at Simon & Schuster Children’s UK: my sparkling editor Lucy Rogers, marketing and publicity gurus Eve Wersocki-Morris and Olivia Horrox, and the best cover designer an author could wish for, Jenny Richards. Also, I’m very lucky to get to work with Sourcebooks in the USA, with particular thanks to my editor Annie Berger and to the awesome team in marketing and publicity—Mallory Hyde and Lizzie Lewandowski. I adore my U.S. cover art, so thank you to Vivienne To for bringing my characters to life.

A huge thanks has to go to my champion and agent Juliet Mushens, who wouldn’t need a baku with her two adorable cats Luna and Neville to cause her enough mischief already. And thank you to Molly Ker-Hawn, for helping to bring Jinx to North America.

To my writing friends—Kim, Emma, Jessie, Amie, Laure, Juno, Zoe, Laura, and James—thank you for being the best advice-givers, listeners, and cheerleaders on this wild journey! Also, a special shout-out to Keith Stuart, who helped put Jinxed into the hands of some people who really are trying to design the future. So cool!

And thanks as always to my parents, Angus and Maria, my sister, Sophie, and my friends Sarah, Adam, Tania, Maria Felix, and Natasha. You’re the best team a writer could have around her, and I’m so very lucky to have you all in my life.

About the Author